Shorebirds & Mangroves Beautiful Walk

Posted by Peter McCallum2049.80pc on

You can live in Mackay all your life and not know about some of the magnificent places that exist very close to the city. Discovering hidden gems is one of the great things about the Beautiful Walks program.

The Sandfly Creek Environmental Reserve is one of those places. This site, just east of the city centre, is significant location for migratory birds from the northern hemisphere. Each year around 21,000 birds fly from as far afield as Siberia and Alaska to escape the extreme cold of the northern winter. They spend their days moving back and forth with the tide, feeding on worms and shellfish in order to gain body fat for the long flight home.

We will be touring a couple of sites on our next Beautiful Walk. First we will explore the ocean side of the reserve along the northern end of Town Beach. At low tide many square kilometres of sand flats are exposed at this site. A dune system extends northward along the back of the beach, separating the ocean from a picturesque tidal creek that is reminiscent of the former landscape of this part of Mackay.

Judith Wake, a senior lecturer at CQ University, will give a brief introduction to the processes involved in dynamic systems along the coast of Mackay. You will learn about how and why mangrove systems appear and disappear over time.

We’re hoping to have a few other experts to join us on this Beautiful Walk to help us understand the history, wildlife and cultural importance of the site. Stay tuned for further updates.